Scarred Souls
by Zuul'sShadow
Summary: Is it impossible to control our lives? There are no accidents. Once a life is destroyed is that it? After all, second chances only happen in fairy tales. What happens if you're offered a second chance? Do you take it? Or just accept your fate as is?
1. Chapter 1

**Okay. I have been out of the game for a long time. I used to be known as Makoeyes316. I've decided that I needed a new penname to go with the new me. My profile contains some of the changes in my life. Anyways, enoough of my jawing. Time to get to the story.**

**I know I need to finish some of my stories. Ever since getting laid off I have a lot of free time and ideas. So here we go once again.**

**For now the story is rated T. Eventually I will have to change it to an M rating.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Negima.**

**Chapter 1: The New Roommates**

* * *

"You are such a brat Negi Springfield!"

The words echoed from the small dorm room, out into the halls of the dorm. There never was a quiet day at the Mahora Academy, how could there be? The school, all the way from students to teachers was filled with...strange characters. Believe it or not there are certain things in the world that may seem like fantasy are actually a reality. Take for instance the existence of magi also known as mages. Yes magic and the people who use it do exist. The existence of mages as well as that of their world is kept secret from the human world. Mages work with their Ministra to protect the human world from danger. Unfortunately, there are some magi that would use their powers for evil rather than good. Anyways it's time to get back to the school. There were some normal students (mundanes) that attended the academy. The rest was inhabited by: mages, ghosts, demons, robots and one very angry shinso vampire. Negi Springfield just so happened to be one of those mages.

The door of the room swung open and a young kid was flung into the opposite wall. He slid down the wall upside down, landing on his head. That was Negi. Negi was just a ten year old kid from Wales. Now Negi was remarkable for more reasons just than being a mage. For one he was mature far beyond his short few years. Another reason was that he was the English teacher for the Junior High School girl's class. Negi rolled over on his stomach and ran a hand through his medium length fire red hair. He adjusted his glasses over his chestnut colored eyes before standing back up. He wished he hadn't though because the second he did he was hit in the stomach by a fully packed duffle bag. The force of the bag's impact knocked him off of his feet. A strangely crafted staff followed the bag out of the door.

"And don't forget your perverted rat either!"

A small white object flew out of the door like a furry little baseball. Negi's hand shot out and clasped around the small creature to keep it from slamming into the wall. The creature that he had caught was actually an ermine named Kamo. Kamo was snow white with the exception of the tip of his tail, which was colored in black. The person that was kicking them out of the room was Kagurazaka Asuna. She was Negi's student, roommate and one of his ministra. Asuna had always had a pretty bad temper since the moment that Negi first met her. Lately though she had been getting angry for seemingly no reason at all. Worst of all was that when Asuna got angry she would take it out on him. However, she had never been angry enough to kick him out of the dorm before. The door slammed shut in front of him with a bang that made him wince. Kamo growled angrily and leapt from Negi's hand. The little animal stood on its hind legs and raised his arms up in the air angrily.

"Oh yeah! Well, we don't need you anyways!" Kamo shouted. In addition to being Negi's pet Kamo could also talk and search out potential partners for the mage. "What is her problem anyways?"

"I don't know." Negi shrugged. He fixed his glasses and stood back up. "All I did was say that we need to go to back to master's for some more training." Negi rubbed the sore spot on the back of his head. "I've never seen her so mad."

"Yeah. You would think that we stole her underwear or something!"

"You did take her underwear Kamo-kun!"

"But I always do that," Kamo protested.

Negi shook his head. He picked up his stuff and started to walk down the hall. Kamo climbed up Negi's body until he was resting on his shoulder. There was no point in talking to Asuna when she was like this. No matter what he said she wouldn't let him back in the room. That's when a harsh reality hit Negi full force. He and Kamo had been kicked out of their home with no other place to go. What were they going to do?

"What are we going to do now Kamo-kun?! We have no place to go!"

Kamo waved his paw dismissively. "Don't worry about that aniki. I'm sure that we can find a place to stay. I bet that just about any of the girls in your class would be willing to share their rooms with us!"

"I couldn't do that Kamo-kun," Negi protested. "I don't want to burden any of them. Besides it would be improper of me to stay with one of my students."

"So what were ane-san and Konoka-nee-san then?"

Konoka was their other roommate and one of Negi's students. Negi had to admit that the ermine had a point there. He stepped out of the dorms and out on to the campus grounds. It was mid afternoon so most of the students were back in their rooms or down in the city. Negi walked over to a large fountain and took a seat on the edge. He set his stuff down and leaned forward, resting his chin on his open palm. Perhaps Kamo was right. Asking one of his other students may be the only choice that they had. There was just one problem.

"Who would we stay with?" Negi asked. Kamo turned and looked at his aniki in confusion. Negi was able to catch Chamo's confused look out of the corner of his eye. "If we asked one of the others. Who should we ask?"

Kamo took on his thinking pose before deciding to answer. "What about the class-rep?"

"Ayaka-san?!" Negi asked incredulously.

Ayaka was the last person that he would have thought to ask. The biggest advantage to staying in her dorm would be that she lived with Kotaro. Kotaro was a hanyo and Negi's best friend. That would have been about the only advantage to staying at her place though. After all she already had two other roommates beside Kotaro. One of them was quite frightening when she wanted to be and Ayaka could be pretty scary herself. Not that he would ever tell them that to their faces.

"I-I don't think that would be such a good idea," he said. Thoughts of what could happen to him if he lived with Ayaka drifted through his head. "Besides, I think we should try for someone who knows about us."

Kamo nodded thoughtfully. "True. That would make things easier. Hey, how about Kaede-nee-san?"

That suggestion was much better than his previous. Negi would have had no problem sharing a room with the ninja at all. "That would be good," he admitted. "Unfortunately, she's rooming with the twins."

Kamo groaned and slipped back into his thinking stance. The two of them were so lost in thought that they didn't notice the shadow falling over them. "Negi-sensei?" Negi jumped and looked up at the person that had greeted him. "Is something wrong?"

"Setsuna-san?"

Sakurazaki Setsuna stared down at her sensei with concern swimming in her black eyes. Setsuna was a rather short girl with brown hair that was pulled up and tied on the side. Her skin was snow white and contrasted deeply with her dark hair and eyes. Setsuna's lithe body helped her greatly since she was a Shinmeiryuu swordsman. Her training and knowledge of magic made her a great choice for one of Negi's ministra. Despite being a beautiful girl with a great personality, Setsuna had some serious self esteem issues. You see, Setsuna was half demon and when she was just little her clan abandoned her because she was born with white wings. Most likely it was because of this that Setsuna resented her demon side and hid it whenever possible. For having been so shy at the start Setsuna had come out of her shell and was one of Negi's closest and most trusted friends.

"Negi-sensei are you alright?" She asked again in her soothing tone. The hanyo sat next to him on the fountain and set her nodachi down. She never went anywhere without Yuunagi. "What are you doing out here so late?"

Negi looked up at the fading sun and sighed. It was later than he had thought. "I had an argument with Asuna-san," he lamented.

"Again?"

"All I said was that she should come with me when I go and train with Evangeline-san again."

"Yeah," Kamo nodded. "Then she flipped out and kicked us out of the apartment!" The ermine groused.

"She kicked you guys out?!" Setsuna asked incredulously. "It doesn't sound like you did anything wrong," she mumbled. Setsuna had a hard time contradicting people, especially Asuna. She was afraid to speak her mind because she didn't want to fight with her friends.

"Anyways we need to find a place to stay." Negi sighed and closed eyes. He felt a hand on his and looked up at Setsuna. "Setsuna-san?"

Setsuna looked him in the eyes and gave him a sweet smile. "You can stay with me if you want," she offered. A light blush crept its way on to her face as it always did in situations like this.

"That would be great!" Kamo exclaimed instantly.

"Chamo-kun!" Negi scolded. He turned to Setsuna and gave a gentle shake of his head. "I wouldn't want to be a burden Setsuna-san."

Setsuna smiled and shook her head. "You wouldn't be a burden at all. And I'm sure that Ku wouldn't mind you staying either."

"This is perfect aniki," Kamo said. "They both know about magic. And we can always talk Ku-nee-san into making a pactio with you!"

Both Negi and Setsuna blushed. "You have to stop trying to trick people into a pactio with me," Negi groaned. He turned to face Setsuna and smiled. "I would be honored to stay with you Setsuna-san." Negi stood up and bowed slightly at the waist.

"Ah! D-don't bow to me Negi-sensei," she almost whined. It always made Setsuna nervous when people did things like that.

Negi chuckled slightly. "Thank you Setsuna-san. We owe you." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I-I'm just worried about Asuna-san. She won't really talk to me," he said dejectedly.

Setsuna smiled sympathetically and ruffled his hair. "Don't worry. I'll see if I can talk to her for you. For now though, let's go tell Ku that we're going to get a couple of new roommates."

Negi smiled and gave her a nod. He pulled his bag over his shoulder and grabbed his staff. Setsuna slung Yuunagi over her shoulder and bade Negi to follow her. The young mage did as he was told; Kamo still rode on his shoulder to keep his vantage point. The three of them walked slowly, lapsing into a light conversation. Negi was surprised to hear Setsuna doing most of the talking. She was normally so silent and shy, even around him. Then again most of his attention was focused on the fight that he just had with Asuna. Whenever he fought with the red head he tended to get a little depressed.

"Negi-sensei?" Setsuna asked. The swords girl noticed that her young mage seemed a little distracted. Normally he listened very well and always replied politely. She started to worry about him for a second. "Negi-sensei? Are you alright?"

Negi shook his head and nodded. "Y-yes of course," he answered quickly. "Um, are you sure this is okay?" The young teacher ran a nervous hand through his crimson locks. "Me moving in? Ku Fei-san really won't mind?"

Setsuna chuckled. "I seriously doubt that Ku will mind you staying with us. Besides, knowing her she's probably out training right now."

Negi smiled and nodded. "Yeah. She really can't sit still for long."

* * *

"I am so bored!"

A young girl lay on her bed kicking at the wall out of sheer boredom. She was lying vertically across the bed so that her head hung over the side. Shoulder length blond hair spilled out beneath her, held back only by two ties on the sides of her head. Her emerald colored eyes normally shone with excitement and mischief. Today though they seemed to be full of boredom. The girl was dressed in the Mahora middle school uniform for girls. A short sleeved white shirt with a simple red tie. A red and white checkered skirt that fell down to just above her knees. The skirt was short enough that it revealed most of her long muscular legs. Of course the only reason that her legs had the definition that they did was because she was constantly focused on her martial arts training. In fact she thought that without her training she would be a toothpick.

A yawn escaped her lips again. "There's nothing to do," Ku Fei complained.

Ku knew that there was no one else in the room to hear her. Her roommate Setsuna had gone out on patrol a little while ago, leaving her by herself. Her apprentice was no doubt busy with his teacher related duties. And all of the rest of her friends seemed to have plans already. There was only one plus that came with the silence of the room. It made it much easier for Ku to meditate. Of course her meditation would not last for very long. It never did. Ku absent mindedly kicked at the wall. She hoped that Setsuna came back soon before she killed herself out of sheer boredom. After just a minute or so her prayer was answered by the turning of the door handle.

"Where have you been?!" The martial artist demanded. She opened her green eyes to behold, not her roommate, but the face of her disciple and teacher. "Negi-bozu?" Ku asked confused. "What are you doing here?!" In her excitement to see him the tiny blond rolled off the bed and clapped him enthusiastically on the shoulder.

Negi smiled at her usual reaction to him. "It's good to see you master." He bowed slightly at the waist and Kamo waved to Ku Fei.

"So what are you doing here?" Ku asked as she patted Kamo on the head.

"Well, that's sort of the thing." Setsuna walked into the room carrying a duffle bag.

Five minutes later the four friends found themselves sitting at the coffee table in the middle of the room. "Let me get this straight," Ku said. "Asuna kicked you guys out. Now you have no place to go?"

"That's would be the gist of it," Kamo replied. The ermine had transferred himself from Negi to Setsuna.

Setsuna fidgeted for a second before looking at her roommate. "I told them that they could stay here. If that's alright with you!"

Ku scratched at her head as she always did when confused or nervous. Taking a look over at Negi she could clearly see the discomfort on his face. She knew that he didn't want to ask for fear of being a burden. "Of course it's alright with me!"

Kamo pumped his fist and Negi's eyes instantly brightened up. "Really?! It's really okay with you master Ku?"

"Of course. Having a live in disciple will be fun!"

Setsuna smiled. She knew that Ku Fei wouldn't turn the two away. "Alright. Now that we have that settled. What are we going to have for dinner?"

"Nikuman!" Was Ku's instant answer.

Negi chuckled. "Whatever you decide will be fine with me."

"Oooh!" Kamo started to wave his paws around rather childishly. "Can we have pizza?! Please?" He begged with a large grin. "Konoka-nee-san never let us have pizza. She said it was unhealthy."

"That sounds pretty good," Setsuna agreed. "What do you think Ku?"

"Okay. Can we get pepperoni?!"

"Sure," Setsuna chuckled. Ku always seemed to get excited about food. It always amazed Setsuna just how much the young Chinese girl could put away. "What about you Negi-sensei?"

"Pepperoni is good," he agreed.

"Alright. I'll call it in then."

Setsuna got up to go and make the call, leaving the others alone. Kamo decided that he would take a tour of the room and find the best place to sleep. Meaning that he was searching the underwear drawers to find which one suited him the most. Negi decided to take a look around so that he could get more acclimated with the room. The walls of the room were painted a dark shade of blue with a matching carpet but in a lighter shade. Over in one corner of the room was a desk that Negi assumed was for Setsuna to do her studying on. The beds were lined up on the wall furthest from the door with dressers on either side. Two doors obviously led to the bathroom and kitchenette. In the middle of the room was a glass coffee table in front of a couch that had been placed on the wall opposite of the door. Across from the couch were a television set and a strange looking plant. Against the wall opposite of the beds was what appeared to be a workout section complete with weights and a dummy for Ku to practice on. The decoration of the room was a little different from his last one. Instead of posters various weapons of different cultures littered the walls. Negi found it to be a bit strange yet oddly fitting of the two middle school girls.

"Do you like the room, aru?" Ku asked.

Negi turned to the young Chinese girl and smiled. "Yes it's very nice," he admitted earnestly. "The weapons are actually quite comforting."

Ku laughed at her apprentice. "You have been hanging around us for far too long Negi-bozu."

"I don't think so," Negi replied. He looked down at his hands for a brief second. A strange mellow smile appeared on his face. At first Ku began to worry because she thought that she had upset him. "I never would have made it this far without your help."

The young martial artist shook her head. "I don't think so. You would have been fine without us. I mean I wasn't much help." Ku scratched the back of her head in her normal nervous fashion.

"That's not true. Without your training and support I never would have made it through the Budokai. I never would have made it to Chao-san if you and Setsuna-san hadn't been there to help me."

"That may have been true." Setsuna walked back in from the small kitchenette with her arms folded across her chest. A small smile was plastered on to her pale face. "Maybe you might not have made it to Chao without our help. But no one but you could have defeated Chao."

"I can't let that go to my head." Negi stood up and looked out of the window. The evening sun slowly settled behind the forests as day faded to night. "I can't let myself get cocky because of luck. That's when you screw up and somebody gets hurt," he nearly whispered.

Setsuna lowered her head and gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. The young hanyo knew how to deal with Negi when he acted like a kid. When he acted like an adult however she suddenly became lost. For what may have been a brief second Ku felt the same way. Then as if nothing happened she shook it off. The wistful smile that usually held its place became a deep frown. The blond walked up next to Negi and without warning smacked him sharply on the back of the head. The sound shocked both Negi and Setsuna. Kamo even poked his head out from Setsuna's underwear drawer to see what had happened. Negi held the back of his head and looked up at Ku Fei in shock.

"It's true there is luck in every battle," Ku said. "But you cannot deny skill. That's how you really lose. I taught you to always be confident in your abilities. Finding a balance between modesty and confidence is key."

Setsuna watched as a smile made its way back on to Negi's face. Ever since Negi and Ku Fei had started sparring with one another she noticed that Ku had the ability to always cheer Negi up. In fact there was one particular lesson that she remembered with the utmost clarity. It was after Negi had a particularly hard training session with his other master, Evangeline.

**Flashback**

**(Thwomp!)**

Setsuna winced as she saw her young teacher hit the ground for what had to be the thousandth time that day. After a rather hard training session with Evangeline a few minutes ago, in which Negi had been thoroughly punished, he had a scheduled training session with Ku Fei. After dealing with the vampire Negi was in no condition to even try and deal with a training session. Still, like the strong headed young boy he was, he tried his hardest. Only to rarely block an attack from his master and never land one himself. Negi tried his best to get to his feet but a sudden jolt of pain where Evangeline hit him with an ice spell knocked him back down. Setsuna had the urge to rush to his side but didn't want to make him think that she was treating him like a child. He had no idea what was going on with him. After his battle with Chao and all of his new training with Evangeline something was wrong with him and he didn't know why. He could barely mount a halfway decent defense let alone an offense. Through his muddled mind he was barely able to make out the form of Ku standing over him.

"You okay Negi-bozu?"

"...Sorry."

"Why?"

"I just can't seem to find my footing today."

Ku Fei offered Negi a hand but he turned his head away from her, refusing to let her help him up. Ku pulled her hand away slowly. Negi had never refused her help before and it kind of stung when he did it just now. The young mage tried to stand up but his legs refused to listen to him. Just as Setsuna was about to walk over Ku plopped down next to her young friend. The blond knew that Negi hated to quit when they were training. However, it was obvious that he was in pain and that something was bothering him. Sure Ku believed in pushing him hard but she wasn't going to drive him like Evangeline did. She didn't want to be that kind of master. Moreover she didn't want to be that kind of friend.

Negi glanced over at the blond and slowly shook his head. "Sorry Master Ku. I-"

"It's alright Negi-bozu."

"No," he whispered. "I'm neglecting your training by giving up early."

"It doesn't count when you're tired." Ku Fei sighed and lay back on the stone tile beneath them. "Did you ever wonder why I agreed to train you?" The blond turned over on her side and rested her head in her hand. Ku glanced up at Negi with deep pools of emerald, waiting for his answer.

Negi thought about the question before he answered. The truth was that he never knew why she agreed to train him in martial arts... All that it could do was serve to slow down her own training. After taking a minute to think about it he simply shrugged. There was no good reason in his mind as to why she would train him. Ku sighed and shook her head. She knew that he had been trying to think of the most logical answer and it simply evaded him. When in reality the answer was quite simple and right in front of his face.

"Simple. I trained you because I saw potential. Because I knew that you wouldn't misuse your teachings." Ku pushed herself up so that she was kneeling just in front of her young protégé. "The main reason I agreed to train you is because you are my friend."

Negi turned to look at the young woman with a smile. "Simple as that huh?"

"Simple as that."

**End Flashback**

"You know you were rather impressive in that fight." Setsuna added earnestly. "Chao was right when she said that you were the only person who had a chance at beating her."

Negi raised his hands in defeat. "I know when I should quit." To Ku Fei he said, "Did you really have to hit me?"

"Well somebody has to smack some sense in to you, Negi-bozu."

"_Chao-san?" _Negi thought silently. _"You told me that I didn't treat the others right. In so many word anyways. I needed to stop coddling them." _He looked up at the two young girls chatting about something. _"I treat them like they're helpless girls. Yet without them I couldn't even stand on my own."_

"Negi-Bozu?" Negi opened his eyes to Ku Fei waving her hand in front of his face. She looked a little confused by his momentary space out. "We have to go down and wait for the pizza. They get lost."

"Of course." Negi smiled and stood from his place on the floor. "Where did Setsuna-san go?"

"She go take shower."

Negi nodded and followed after the young martial artist. They walked through the halls in companionable silence which left Negi some time to think. On their way outside the duo ran in to Misora, one of Negi's students and a fellow mage. Thankfully she didn't ask what Negi was doing with Ku Fei this late in the day. He assumed that she must have thought they were going out to train. It was common knowledge among the class and a good portion of the school that Negi was learning Kenpo from the older blond. Ku Fei lead him outside and in to the warm glow of the setting sun. They continued on for a while until coming to the fountain that Negi had run in to Setsuna at earlier. So the two of them sat on the edge of the fountain and waited.

Ku Fei stretched and lay down against the stone. From where she was laying she could see some birds lazily gliding through the sky. "What wrong Negi-bozu?"

"Just thinking," he answered wistfully.

"About what?"

"Just-just about things in general."

"About Chao? And our trip to Wales?" Negi leaned back so that he was laying on his back with one leg hanging over the edge. "If it's a good idea?"

"Yes. And no." Ku Fei blinked. She rolled over on her stomach so that her forehead was almost touching the top of Negi's head. "They say that every little decision you make can change your future for better or worse. Every decision. Does that mean that it is impossible to control our lives?" Negi closed his eyes in deep thought.

After a minute or so the young mage sensed that a shadow had fallen over him. He opened his eyes to find that Ku Fei's face hovering scant inches above his. For a second all they did was stare at one another. Negi could see the orange glow of the sun reflected in her green eyes.

"Negi-bozu is always so serious. You're always thinking about the future." She reached a hand out and ran the back of her fingers across his cheek. The slightly intimate gesture caused him to blush for a second. "You should think about now instead."

"Hey can you guys help me? I'm supposed to be delivering this pizza."

Ku Fei smiled at Negi. "Told you."

As the young woman walked over to the pizza delivery guy Negi narrowed his eyes imperceptibly. Was she saying that she was right about the pizza guy getting lost? Or was she talking about the whole paying attention to the present speech. Negi decided that he didn't really want to know right now. For right now he just wanted to get the pizza and go back upstairs. Being near his martial arts master and his ministra would be kind of fun. Right now though he needed to focus on his growling stomach. The young mage rolled off of the fountain and began searching for his wallet. Ku Fei was busy talking to the pizza guy. And the pizza guy was too busy staring at some of Ku Fei's assets to care about what she was saying. The young delivery man was lucky that Negi hadn't been paying close enough attention. Otherwise he may have gotten beat up by a redheaded ten year old. In fact he was lucky that Ku Fei hadn't noticed.

"So how much?" Ku Fei asked in her usual friendly tone.

The delivery guy jumped and finally took his gaze from her legs. "Oh um…"

"Here this should be enough." Negi offered the man some money with enough left over for the tip.

"You no have to pay Negi-bozu!" The blond said trying to wave his money away.

"Don't worry Ku-san. It's the least that I can do since you're letting me stay with you."

"But-"

"I insist!" Negi said, putting the money in to the older boy's hand.

Ku smiled gratefully at her sensei and accepted the pizzas. With a quick goodbye and one last glance at Ku Fei he was on the way to his next delivery. "You didn't have to."

"It was my pleasure. Come on. Setsuna-san is probably out of the shower by now."

The two friends walked through the halls making friendly small talk on the way. Negi laughed at something Ku Fei said and nearly dropped the pizzas. They walked through the dorm room door and saw Setsuna was out of the shower. She was dressed in a pair of grey sweatpants and a black tank top.

"Oh thank god. I'm starving!"

"Me too!" Kamo scampered out of the kitchen and up on to Negi's shoulder.

Negi laughed and glanced to the blond. "I guess we should eat."

Ku Fei giggled. "I get plates!" She exclaimed, heading to the kitchen.

Setsuna laughed and took the plates from Negi. "I think she sees this as some kind of sleep over."

"I guess that in a way it is."

The brunette set the boxes down on the table and opened them up. "Mmmm. This smells great."

"Whoa!" The two of them turned around and saw Ku Fei attempting to balance plates in one hand and cans of soda in the other. Negi jumped up and took the drinks from her. "Thanks Negi-bozu!"

The four friends sat down at the center of the room in a relaxed circle. Negi placed a couple pieces of pizza on each plate and passed them back. The four friends ate and talked. Mostly small talk about class and the stuff that was happening around the school. Negi learned that Ku Fei had been challenged twice for her spot as chairmen of the martial arts club. Obviously there was no change in the leadership spot. He found out that Setsuna had been asked out on a date by one of the high school guys. When he asked Setsuna I she had turned the young man down she blushed but nodded. According to Ku Fei the guy that asked her out was a well known womanizer and stated she would have beat him up if he messed with Setsuna. Negi chuckled as Setsuna argued with her roommate that she could take care of herself. The two of them must have been very close. This brought a question to his mind.

"How did the two of you become roommates? I thought that you were rooming with Paru-san?" He indicated Ku Fei with a nod.

"Well," Ku put her slice of pizza down, "we used to be. But Haruna-san stayed over with honya-chan and baka leader more than she stayed here. So it was kind of lonely here by myself."

"Then when I came they couldn't find a place for me. So Saotome-san moved in with the others and they let me move in here with Ku."

"Ah good. I know what it's like to be by yourself."

The statement was simple enough with seemingly no emotion behind it. Even though Negi hid it well in his voice the melancholy smile and dim eyes gave him away. Setsuna felt her heart break for the young boy in front of her. Both girls knew what loneliness felt like and he experienced it at just ten years of age. Ku Fei felt uncomfortable in situations like this. It was harder for her to help him with adult problems that spanned beyond depression. Maybe it was because he was just ten years old. Before she had met Negi she never could have believed that ten year olds would have those kinds of problems. Yet she was his master and his friend, she had to say something. Good thing Kamo was faster on the draw and saved her.

"What do you two want to do in life?" Everyone in the room blinked and turned towards Kamo. The first intelligent question of the night and it came from the ermine. "Let's start with Setsuna-nee-san."

"With me?" Setsuna sighed and leaned back against the couch. "I don't know. I really like my job as a demon hunter. I get to help others and I would make good money in the magical world." She shrugged. "Besides it's the only thing I have ever known."

"That sound good," Ku Fei replied. "I like to do something like it. Have a lot of adventures! What about Negi-bozu?"

"After I find my father? I want to travel around the world. Help people if I can."

The girls smiled expecting nothing less from the young man. "What about you Kamo-san?" Setsuna asked.

The ermine smirked and sat up in the lotus position. "I'm going wherever aniki is going!" He declared in a definite tone. "We are partners after all."

"Thanks Kamo-kun. Not sure what I would do without you." Negi gave him a pat on the head.

Kamo laughed. "You'd get eaten alive if you didn't have me!"

"Gee thanks," Negi remarked sarcastically. "Truth is," he began, falling back on the floor, "I'm going to need all of the help that I can get."

"What happened between you and Asuna-san anways?" Setsuna asked. "She's been mad at you before but never enough to kick you out."

"I…for once I really don't know."

"Pfft!" Negi turned and looked at Ku Fei. "Asuna get mad all the time. Just ignore her." Setsuna looked at Ku Fei oddly. There was a little bit of anger behind the blonde's voice that was rarely heard. "Beside you stay here long as you want." She glanced at Setsuna to make sure what she said was okay.

Setsuna smiled brightly at her young sensei. "Of course you can. We're happy to have you."

"I just…I don't want to impose on you."

"Nonsense. You're staying." Setsuna glanced at the clock on the wall. "I have to get to sleep. I have patrol in the morning."

"We train tomorrow Negi-bozu. Should get sleep to."

"Right."

"Are you sure that the couch will be okay? Until we clear the loft tomorrow?" Setsuna asked.

"The couch will be more than enough. Thanks."

"Good night Negi-sensei."

"Night Setsuna-san."

Negi watched as she climbed in to the top bed then plopped down on the couch. Ku Fei grabbed clothes and walked in to the bathroom to change. What was he going to do? There was no way he could impose on them for a long period of time. Kamo climbed on the arm of the couch and curled up in a ball. He couldn't go back home either. Asuna was mad at him and until he figured it out he couldn't go back. Then again did he really want to go back when she was getting mad at him for no reason? Besides the girls said that he could stay as long as he wanted to. A blanket and a pillow and suddenly plopped down on his face. Negi moved the articles aside and looked up to see Ku Fei smiling at him. She was dressed like Setsuna in a pair of black sweatpants and a yellow tank top. The martial artist tossed him a wave and a smile before turning off the light and climbing in to bed. Soon the steady rattle of Chamo's snoring reached his ears. Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad thing after all.

* * *

**End Chapter**

**Well there it is folks chapter one! Seems like Negi has some new roommates. With this comes new opportunity and new challenges. Next chapter: Negi discovers that it may be more than just chance that he came to stay. If you like this chapter and want more please send me review. If you like the story more will come.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Before we start I would like to thank everyone for reading and all of those who reviewed. I greatly appreciate all of the people that take their time to read my stories. Without it I am but a simple writer. If there are any questions please feel free to e-mail me. A nod to Archangelwings for being my first reviewer. **

**Chamo: Albert Chamomile here to read the disclaimer. Mako-sama does not own Negima.**

**Zuul: Thank you Chamo-kun.**

**Chamo: No problem. Can you take this chain off of me now? (Mako shakes head.) Why?!**

**Zuul: You know why!**

**

* * *

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Chapter 2: Sleepless Nights

Sleep. An elusive goal for many people. That was what the young mage wanted tonight. Ever since his defeat of Chao and the decision to travel to the magical world, Negi had gotten very little sleep. Various decisions he had made kept him up at night. For example the decision to include his students in the adventure. Of course they all knew about magic and they did willingly agree to follow him despite the danger they would be in. Did that mean that he should allow them to come when he knew they could get hurt? Did he have the right to get them involved? Did he have the right to tell them they could not come? Had he really made the right choice concerning Chao? Perhaps the world really would have been a better place with the knowledge that mages existed. Now on top of that he had Asuna mad at him now. What had he done to make her so angry? Since the moment she had kicked him out, Negi wondered what he was going to do about a place to stay. He was sure that with the new worry it would be another sleepless night. Thankfully Setsuna and Ku Fei saved him from trying to figure something out. With that small victory he had found himself able to fall asleep.

So then why was this outside force trying to push him out of his comfortable slumber? Prodding him back in to the world of the living. Only the sound of his name being silently called made him finally stir. Negi blinked and slowly lifted his head off of the pillow. With a small moan he rolled over on his side. After a minute of trying to clear his bleary eyes he reached for his glasses and slipped them on. Ku Fei was kneeling in front of him on the floor. She had a frown on her face and he couldn't tell in the dark but there appeared to be tears welling in her eyes. Wait? Tears! Had she been crying? Negi sat upright making the girl jump slightly. He turned to her and ran a hand through his hair. Negi took one look at her and knew that he had to be gentle with his choice of words. She already looked frightened and she felt bad for waking him up. Chamo snored, unaffected by the two of them.

Negi reached over and grabbed his watch off of the arm of the couch. "It's 2:15 in the morning. Are you alright Ku-san?"

"Sorry for waking you Negi-bozu," Ku said. Negi was taken aback by the quiet tremble in her voice. "I need make sure Negi-bozu ok."

"Ku-san, I'm fine."

"Good. Now can sleep again."

Ku Fei reached out with one arm and gently pushed him back further on the couch. Negi was about to say something but was silenced by her climbing on to the couch with him. Ku Fei grabbed the blanket, pulling it over them, before snuggling up next to Negi. She was asleep the instant her head hit the pillow. Negi on the other hand was awake now. Why had she come to check on him in the middle of the night? Could she have had a bad dream? That would explain the frightened tremble in her voice. Whatever had her frazzled didn't seem to bother her at the moment. On the contrary, she looked quite content sleeping there next to him. After calming himself down for a second he gathered the courage to reach out and give her a shake. Before he could even touch her shoulder Ku Fei whimpered and pushed further against him. If he wasn't blushing before then Negi knew that he had to be turning a bright shade of crimson. Looking down at her Negi lost his resolve to wake the sleeping girl. And there was no way that he was going to wake up Setsuna to help him. No, for now he would try and make himself comfortable and he would deal with the situation tomorrow.

Setsuna yawned, stretching out her tired limbs. It had taken them a while to get to bed last night and she had to get up early to train this morning. It was unusual for the young swords girl to stay awake so late when she had training. Last night wasn't exactly the usual night for her and her Chinese roommate. No, last night they had a visitor. She offered to let Negi stay in their dorm with them. The ten year old teacher had been so distraught when she found him that she just had to help. Negi was more than just a teacher to her. He was one of her closest and dearest friends. She would do anything to protect him and she knew he would do the same for her. So when the young hanyo saw him last night it hurt her. Setsuna knew what she had to do and she didn't regret it for one second. Only one question remained in her mind. What had Negi done to make Asuna so angry that she would kick him out? Setsuna supposed that she would just have to find out for herself.

She opened her eyes a little wider to find the sun had filtered in through the blinds. Setsuna took the top bunk for that reason. She knew that Ku Fei hated being wakened by the sun if she didn't want to get up early for training. The sound of running water caught the brunette's attention. After taking a second to work the kinks out of her neck she decided to get out of bed and investigate. _'Maybe Ku got up and decided to do the dishes.' _That thought was banished when she spotted the young blond fast asleep on the couch. Setsuna blinked twice in surprise. Chamo was still sleeping on the arm of the couch but Negi was nowhere to be seen. Setsuna hurried in to the small kitchen and saw Negi hard at work washing the dishes. He was preoccupied to the point where he didn't even notice that she was there.

"Negi-sensei?"

Negi started, turning around and dropping the plate in his hand. Setsuna darted forward and deftly caught the plate in her right hand. She straightened up and offered the plate to Negi with a smile. "Nice catch," he responded, accepting the plate from her.

Setsuna smiled. "I try my best." Immediately after that her smile disappeared. "Did you sleep well?"

"Well enough. How about you?"

"…Um I'm okay." Setsuna nodded. She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over chest. "I assume that you and Ku had a comfortable sleep?"

Negi sputtered and nearly dropped the plate again. "Setsuna-san I di-di-di-didn't..." he sputtered blushing madly.

Setsuna brought a hand to her mouth to keep back the amused laugh just on the edge of her lips. "I know. I know. So what did happen last night?"

Negi glanced back out and saw that his instructor was fast asleep. He wasn't sure that he should tell Setsuna what had happened. What if it was something that Ku Fei didn't want anyone to know about? That was why he made sure to wake up early. If possible he wanted to avoid embarrassing her. The mage in training looked up in to the eyes of his ministra. Setsuna was well trained to hide her feelings and secrets from an enemy. Negi was no enemy. He could clearly see the concern in her large brown eyes. It was obvious that Setsuna and Ku Fei were close. Last night and the look in her eyes was more than evident of that fact. Negi sighed; maybe he could tell her what happened. The two were roommates after all.

"Okay," he conceded. "I was asleep last night. I felt someone shaking me and when I woke up Ku-san was kneeling next to the couch." Negi cleared his throat in the hopes it would cure his anxiousness. "She asked if I was okay. She-she looked really upset. After I convinced her I was fine she got on the couch with me. I didn't have the heart to wake her."

"Oh no," Setsuna groaned. "She had another nightmare?"

"Another? How many nightmares does she have?"

"A lot," she answered simply. Negi followed Setsuna back to the couch. She sat down next to Ku and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "I've never seen or heard of any nightmares like the ones that she has."

"How long has she been having nightmares?" Negi glanced at the girl on the couch with sad eyes.

"Since I moved in," Setsuna replied. "I remember when I came here I didn't want to get close with anyone. Ku was so friendly and gladly offered to share her room with me. I was…"

"Standoffish?"

"Hm. That's a great deal nicer than I was going to put it. Anyways I was up one night and I heard her crying. The next day she was real irritable and I just ignored it. A couple nights later she woke up screaming. I stayed up with her all night. The rest is history."

"Does she have the dreams all of the time?"

"Just about. They slowed down after you arrived."

"After I got here?" He asked in mild interest. Setsuna nodded and informed him that they recently came back in full force. "Hm? Maybe I can make her a dreamless sleep potion."

"Perhaps. I think we should get her back in her own bed." Setsuna stood up and pulled the blanket with her. "She's going to be embarrassed enough if she remembers what happened." The brunette lifted her roommate in her arms and carried her over to her bed.

"I need t-to go take a-a shower," he mumbled.

Setsuna set Ku Fei down in her bed and pulled the covers over her. She cocked her head to the side. Had she heard that right? Setsuna turned around to ask him what was going on. The room was empty. Negi was gone and Chamo had disappeared from the arm of the couch.

Negi ran down the hall at top speed. His bag was in one hand and Chamo was in the other. "Chamo-kun! Chamo-kun wake up!"

The ermine grunted and opened his eyes slightly. "Whuzzat aniki?!" He slurred, flailing around the air.

"We have to go back to the room and grab something."

Chamo woke himself up and climbed up to Negi's shoulder. "Wait. Do you really think that ane-san is going to let us back in the room?"

"Relax. She's on her paper route and Konoka-san is at one of her fortune teller club meetings. I doubt that they've changed the locks."

Negi rounded the corner at top speed. It was much easier to navigate the halls in the early mornings when all of the students were still asleep. Finally he came to the door of his old place and jammed the key in the lock. After a moment of fumbling with the lock he heard an audible click. Negi threw the door open and ran in. Immediately he rushed up to the loft that he had been sleeping in and began his search. Chamo grabbed some of his own things that he left behind and chucked them in the bag. Negi grabbed his potion case and gently placed it in the duffle. After that came his diploma from Meldiana. Now he had one more specific thing in his mind.

"Where is that book?"

"What book are we looking for aniki?"

"That masters potion book that I got from Stan's place."

"Oh! It's over here in my drawer!" Chamo pulled open the drawer and pointed inside. "I borrowed it to try and figure out the formula for the aging candies." Negi held his hand out in a gesture to ask why he wanted it for that. "What? It has to be cheaper than actually buying the things."

Negi rolled his eyes and pulled the book out of the drawer. It was a thick tome covered by worn brown leather. The title read 'Potions to Move the Heavens' written by Martine McTavish in Gaelic. McTavish was perhaps the world's best potion maker to have ever existed. Stan was one of his disciples and was said to have the ability to surpass the grand master himself. If there is a way to make a dreamless sleep potion it would be in that book. As the last thing that Negi had of Stan's the book was very important to him. He wrapped the book in one of his shirts and placed it gently in his pack. After grabbing a couple of other things and throwing them in the bag they were ready to go.

"So why were we here for this stuff?" Chamo asked. The ermine was currently trying to fit his ermine friendly pc in the bag.

"I'll explain during class today."

Just as he was about to leap down from the loft something caught his eyes. A small black rectangular box stuck out from the top drawer of his mini dresser. Negi could have slapped himself for forgetting to take that with him. He snatched the box up and shoved it in his pocket. He zipped the bag up and flung the strap over his shoulder. Negi grabbed the laptop while Chamo clambered in to the mage's pocket. Negi leapt from the loft, landing with a soft thud. He hurried out the door and locked it behind him. Negi hurried down the hall making sure to check around each corner in case some of his students walked by. They would want to know why he was carrying all of his stuff from the room so early in the morning. That was something that he did not want to deal with right now. After a trip made slightly longer by all of the stuff he was carrying he was happy to be back in the room. With a sigh of relief he set the computer on a desk near the door and dropped his bag on the floor.

"Well that was not what I'm used to," he breathed.

Chamo emerged from the pocket rubbing his head. "Yeah. Good job running in to the corner super spy!"

Negi smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. Sorry about that."

"Where did you go Negi-sensei?" Setsuna asked, walking out of the kitchen. She held a piece of toast in one hand and a glass of milk in the other.

"I just went to get some things from Asuna and Konoka-san's room."

"Well it about time you back." Said a grumpy voice.

Negi looked over and saw Ku Fei sitting on her bed dressed in her training gear. She offered him a smile that barely twitched the corner of her mouth. Negi knew that she was trying to remain passive and put on a cheerful face. It was painfully obvious that whatever dream she had last night was still fresh on her mind. She looked annoyed and more than tired. Ku Fei got up and walked over to him, grabbing his sleeve. "We behind schedule." She pulled the young man out of the room, leaving him no time to change or protest. Setsuna felt bad for both of her young friends. The dreams were always hard on her blond friend. And that meant that things were going to be hard on Negi as well. She drained the milk from her glass, grabbed Yuunagi, and followed them out of the door.

* * *

"Your leg in wrong position!"

Negi looked over at his master with a surprised look on his face. He could have sworn that his placement was perfect. More over was the fact that Ku Fei had been acting uncharacteristically critical this morning. Setsuna watched Ku Fei walk over to Negi with annoyance clearly written on her face. She placed her leg in between Negi's and shifted his left foot with her own. Her emerald eyes scanned over his form critically. After she was sure of his stance she sat back down on the bench next to Setsuna. She closed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hey." Ku Fei opened her eyes and looked over at Setsuna. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"What?"

"Come on. I know that you had a nightmare last night. You slept next to Negi last night." The martial artist blushed slightly. "It was obviously bad!"

"What nightmares?" Chamo asked. The ermine had gone to one of the drink machines and finally made his way back.

"Just drop it please?" She asked, a hint of desperation lacing her voice.

"Negi! Nee-chans!"

Setsuna's lips set in a thin line she stood up. "Okay," she gently conceded. "We're your friends. And we're worried."

"Hey Kotaro-kun!"

The girls looked up and saw a young boy around Negi's age running towards them. He was about Negi's height with spiky black hair. He was dressed in a pair of black pants, a white shirt, and a black jacket. It looked like he was a student at the school. Poking out just above the crop of wild hair was a pair of pointed dog like ears. A tail swished gently behind him while he ran. Kotaro Inugami was like Setsuna, a hanyo. He was an inu; half human and half dog demon. When they had first met Negi and Kotaro were a little less than friendly with one another. The next time that the two of them crossed paths it saw them teaming up to rescue some of Negi's students. However, it was their love of fighting and desire to be the best that turned them to fast friends.

"Negi, what's going on man?" Kotaro asked. He gave Negi a friendly slap on the shoulder. "Wh-why are you training in those clothes?"

Negi looked down at the button down shirt and pants he had been wearing yesterday. He didn't want to tell him that something was going on with Ku Fei. "I woke up late. Didn't have time to change."

"…Okay. How are you doing nee-chans?"

"I'm fine." Ku Fei gave him a solemn wave from her spot on the bench. Before Kotaro asked what was going on Setsuna shooed him off. "Come on Kotaro-san. We're late for our patrol."

Kotaro stumbled alongside her but glanced back over his shoulder. "O-okay. See you guys later!"

"Be careful!" Negi called after them.

Negi turned around looking for his master. Ku Fei was still sitting on the bench, staring down at the ground. Chamo was staring up at her in concern. Negi walked over nervously wringing his hands together. "Master Ku?"

"Come on. We practice forms together."

"Are you sure you want to?" Negi asked. He was really starting to worry about his student.

The look that he received from the blonde was enough to keep him quiet on the subject. Negi breathed deeply relaxing into his fighting stance. It took Ku Fei a little longer to find a comfortable stance. Their movements started out slow with some of the Tai Chi movements they liked to practice. Slowly but surely their hand movements sped up but their feet stayed in place. They slid their right foot out, bringing their right arm back at the same time. On the second move to bring their left foot even with their right Ku Fei lost her balance. She fell forward expecting a hard impact with the ground. She opened her eyes and saw Negi standing over her with concerned eyes.

Negi had been moving along with the practiced motions easily. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Ku Fei struggling to keep up with him. The next thing he knew she was heading for the ground. Negi twisted reversing the spin of his body. He swiped his arm out and wrapped it around Ku Fei's waist stopping her fall dead. The blond whimpered in annoyance and looked up at him. Negi had to do his best not to do a double take. Now that he had a better view of her face he could clearly see the bags under her eyes. She looked slightly pale and her eyes were a little red. Had she been crying? Negi helped her to her feet and together they walked back to the bench. Chamo was waiting for them and offered Negi a bottle of water.

"Are you okay Ku-nee-san?"

"Just tired," she mumbled. Negi passed the bottle to her and she accepted it with a nod.

"Maybe we should take a break?" The two of them sat down on the bench with Chamo between them. "Ku-san about last night."

"Don't," she warned.

"Setsuna-san told me that you have these real bad nightmares. I thought that maybe you would want to talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it!"

"Why not? What are you frightened of?"

"I'm not frightened! You know nothing Negi-bozu!" Tears were welling in her eyes shocking the two of them. Negi reached out a hand to touch her shoulder but she shoved him back. "Leave me alone!" She cried, before running off.

Negi stood their shocked by his student's outburst. Chamo was the first person to come to his senses. "What was that all about?"

Negi shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not really sure."

* * *

"So she just ran off?!"

Negi was running down the hall with Setsuna close by his side. Negi was dressed in his brown suit and Setsuna was in her school uniform. The two of them had gotten back late from their activities and had to rush to make it to class.

"I asked her if she wanted to talk about it. She shoved me and then ran off!"

"I was worried something like that might happen," she said as the rounded a corner. Setsuna shook her head. "She always gets like that after one of her nightmares!"

"So she's had these nightmares before?" Chamo asked.

"Just about all of the time."

The two of them reached the classroom and stopped to catch their breath. After gaining their composure they opened the door and walked in. As they expected they were last two people to enter the class. Everyone was chatting amiably while they waited for their instructor. Negi and Setsuna split up heading to their respective places in the classroom. As Negi took his place at the front of the class Ayaka, the class representative, lead the class in their bow. After that Negi drilled them for a few minutes then set them to some independent practices. He took the free time to start studying his book for a dreamless potion while Chamo crawled around the desk drawer searching for his stash of candy. After fifteen minutes of a useless search stretched his arms and leaned back in the chair. The slight movement reminded him that there was something in his pocket. He reached in and drew out the rectangular box from earlier. Negi stared at the box, debating on whether or not to open it.

"_What's with the box?" _Asked a voice in his head.

Negi looked down at the drawer and saw Chamo staring up at him. They always used telepathy to communicate in the classroom. Since Negi had a reason to practice his telepathy it didn't put as much as a strain on him as it used to. Negi opened the box and gently set it in the door. The ermine glanced in the box and nodded. Inside was a silver ring upon which two phoenixes were engraved. In the middle of the two birds was a dark green soul gem. The two phoenixes on the ring denoted that he was the top graduate that year. The stone in the middle was supposed to show the power of the magi. So Negi always found it odd that his stone was a soul gem. Soul gems were more often than not used in necromancy.

"_My graduation ring. I saw it in the drawer this morning. Thought maybe I should grab it."_

"_You don't seem too happy about finding it."_

Negi sighed in disappointment. _"I just thought that I would travel the world and help people. Here I am and I can't even help Ku-san with her bad dreams."_

"_You've been at it for all of ten minute?!" _Chamo asked as if Negi had no sense of time. _"Take a little longer time to research it."_

"…_Yeah. I guess that's true. I've never seen Ku Fei-san act that way. I have to help her."_

"Negi-kun can you help me for second?"

Negi looked up from the drawer and saw a pink haired girl standing in front of him. She had a bright smile on her face and light green eyes. She was a pretty girl with a lithe body from years of gymnastics. "Of course Makie-san."

Negi helped Makie with the problem that she was on. So the day went. Negi helped the students if they needed it and assigned some extra credit work. Asuna ignored him the whole class and so did Ku Fei. Setsuna gave him a nod of encouragement when he walked by. Negi sighed and gave an imperceptible nod of his head. When the bell rang the class rose from their seat and filed out one by one. Each one of them said goodbye to Negi; Asuna ignored him yet again. Setsuna told him that she would be back at the room if she needed him. Just as the last student left the room Negi was tackled in to the wall. A pair of arms was wrapped around him, nearly crushing his ribs.

"K-Konoka-san?" He choked out.

Konoka pulled Negi's face from her chest and looked him dead in the eyes. Tears filled her big chocolate brown eyes. She swiped her long brunette hair behind her and stood up. Konoka Konoe was the granddaughter of the school's dean and the daughter of one of his father's best friends. Konoka had always been emotional and she had looked out for Negi since the moment she met him. She was actually one of the sweetest and most caring girls he had ever known. She was beautiful, intelligent, and an excellent cook. One day she would make someone the perfect wife. Even though she was his student Negi had to admit that he envied the one that captured her heart. Still he doubted that he would ever see her as more than a big sister.

"Negi-kun I was so worried about you!" She cried hugging him again. "After Asuna kicked you out I tried to call. But you didn't answer."

Negi smiled. He knew that it was something like that. "Calm down Konoka-san. I'm fine. My phone died and I just found the charger this morning."

"But where are you staying? Are you eating properly? How have you been sleeping?!"

"Everything is fine," Chamo assured her.

"Yeah. I am eating properly." He chose to omit the fact that they had pizza last night. "I slept just fine. And we are staying with Setsuna-san and Ku-san."

"Set-chan and Ku-chan?" Negi nodded and she rubbed her arm bashfully. "When are you going to come back?"

Negi and Chamo could sense the sadness behind her question. Neither of them wanted to tell her that they weren't sure if they would ever come back. "I guess if Asuna-san calmed down. Then maybe we could come back."

"Oh that Asuna," Konoka groaned. She crossed her arms over chest and pouted. "I've tried to talk to her but she won't even listen to me!"

"You know how she gets when she's angry."

"I know. I can come and see you right?"

"Of course! I'm sure Setsuna-san and Ku-san would love to see you to."

"Great! I can come over and cook a great big meal! I'll see if I can get Asuna to come around. I'll see you tomorrow Negi-kun!"

Konoka gave him one last hug and bolted out of the door.

"Heh! Heh! That girl is a real sweetheart," Chamo replied.

"She is definitely one of the nicest people I ever met."

Negi gathered his things from his desk. Instead of throwing his ring into the bag he took it out of the box. With Chamo's help he was able to get the chain fastened around his neck. Negi turned the ring between his thumb and forefinger. Some day he would earn the right to own that ring. When that day came he would wear it on his finger. Until then it would do just fine to hang around his neck. Negi walked out of the door with Chamo on his shoulder.

"Negi-bozu?"

Negi turned and looked to his right. Ku Fei was leaning against the wall with one foot pressed firmly against the wall. "Ku-san?"

"We talk Negi-bozu?"

Negi walked behind the young girl, following her out in the bright sunlit courtyard. He had no idea where they were going or what she wanted to talk about. Ku Fei led him across the courtyard, past throngs of students. Negi followed patiently behind her. If she wanted to talk about what happened he didn't want to risk running her off. Finally they stopped and Negi realized where they had ended up. It was the exact same spot where Negi had asked her train him in martial arts. Part of him wondered if she had brought them there on purpose. The sharper part of his mind stayed focused on Ku Fei herself. The blond walked over and sat down on one of the benches. For a second neither of them said anything, both of them was hoping that the other would start.

"Negi-bozu-"

"Ku-san I-" They both stopped talking and Negi gave her a wave of his hand. "Go ahead. You first," he offered.

Ku Fei tiredly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I j-just wanted to apologize for snapping at you. Sorry."

"It's okay Ku-san. I was kind of pushy."

"You just worried."

Chamo jumped off of Negi's shoulder and in to her lap. "We are," Negi replied. He walked over and sat down next to her. "Are you sure that you don't want to talk about it?"

"I no want burden Negi-bozu," she whispered. "You have lot to worry about."

"Come on Ku-san. What kind of teacher would I be? Besides we're friends. You can tell me anything."

"Besides we might be able to help," Chamo replied.

'_They can't help. But they seem to be really worried.' _She looked at the encouraging smiles on Negi and Chamo's faces. Her eyes locked with Negi's and she found some of her courage. _'I guess telling them won't hurt.'_

"Setsuna knows," she began, "about the dreams. For long time now I having bad dreams. Always different. In the best dreams I get hurt." Negi's eyes narrowed slightly. "The worst ones…everyone else gets hurt. My parents. The others in the class. You. You get hurt a lot. And I'm forced to watch what happens. When I wake up it's so hard to breathe. I nauseous. I so scared that the thought of getting out of bed hurts. I-I hate facing everyone after what I did…"

Negi and Chamo glanced at one another. "What do you mean? What did you do?"

Tears filled Ku Fei's eyes when she looked at him. "When I hurt them. Sometimes in the dreams I'm the one that's hurting everyone. I-I didn't want to-to tell you. You think less of me?"

Without thinking Negi grabbed her hand in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Of course not! That's just a dream Ku-san."

"N-you don't understand!" She shouted. Ku Fei jumped up spilling Chamo on the ground. "It-it's real. It all feels real!"

"Okay. But we know what kind of person you are. You would never hurt anyone!"

"That's not what the voice said…"

"Voice? What voice?"

Ku Fei's hand started to shake. "I- please no tell anyone."

"Ku Fei-san?"

"Promise me Negi-bozu. If you really my friend you no tell anyone!"

Negi regarded the young girl with confused eyes. Whatever that voice was that Ku Fei mentioned it had her scared as hell. Negi watched the girl face down demons, machines, and a gun toting demon hunter. Never before had he seen her so shaken up. Negi looked in her emerald green eyes and he felt as though his heart was going to break. Her eyes were puffy and red as though she had been crying. The lack of sleep was made evident by the heavy bags under eyes. Her hair was unusually messy and her movements had been sluggish all day. It was a simple enough request. Especially after she just trusted him with something that obviously was a touchy subject.

"Don't worry Ku-san I won't tell anyone. Ku-san?"

Ku Fei started to sway on her feet and had to lean against a tree to keep her balance. "I don't understand what's happening." She slumped to the ground.

"Aniki!" Chamo and Negi ran over and dropped down to her side. "Is she alright?"

Negi took a deep breath to calm himself down. He gently placed two fingers against her neck. He released a grateful sigh and smiled at his partner. "She's fine. I think that she just wore herself out."

"What are we going to do? We need to help her."

"First let's get her back to the room."

Negi placed his hands behind her neck and under her legs. With one quick movement he lifted her in his arms bridal style. Ku Fei sighed and pushed herself closer to his chest. Negi looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms. Now he knew for sure what he had to do. He would protect her no matter what happened.

* * *

Setsuna sighed, brushing her hair behind her ear. Patrol always tired the young hanyo out even though she never found anything worth reporting. She figured that it had something to do with the sheer boredom combined with the need for constant vigilance. Although Setsuna would never tell anyone else she had to admit that she didn't like patrols all that much. There was one other thing that always made the scouting sessions harder. Konoka. The dean's granddaughter always wanted to follow after her when she went on patrol. Each and every time that Konoka asked if she could come Setsuna would turn her down for fear that there may be some danger. As usual she was subjected to Konoka's pouty face. Setsuna hated to depress her friend but the duty of protecting Konoka took higher priority than all of the others. Every day she asked and every day she was denied. Today had been no different.

**Flashback**

"I don't understand I can't go Set-chan?!" Konoka complained.

Setsuna sighed and shook her head. A small smile appeared on her face despite the fact that they were about to have this argument for the thousandth time. Setsuna just had to admire the girl's determination. "You know that it is too dangerous for you to come on patrol with me."

"But you always say that it's boring out there."

"And what if something does happen? It would be safer for you here."

"I don't see the problem if you protect me."

"Your grandfather would have a fit if I took you." Konoka sighed and sat down on the bed. Her grandfather was Setsuna's trump card. Even though she played it early this time the argument was done with. "Maybe some other time."

"Pfft. You always say that," Konoka grumbled. "Never mean it."

Setsuna was about to comment on her childishness when Asuna walked in the room. For a second all they did was look at one another. "Setsuna-san?"

"Asuna-san?"

"Hey. So I heard that Negi was staying with you and Konoka?" She questioned offhandedly.

Setsuna strung Yuunagi over her shoulder. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you. He really doesn't-"

"Look. I don't care about that little brat. He can stay at your place for as long as you can stand him?"

"Why are you always so angry at him?"

"Why should you care?!"

**End Flashback**

Setsuna sighed and shook her head. Her mind was far too weary to try and remember the fight that had ensued. Setsuna couldn't believe that she had a fight with her redheaded friend. She tried to never fight with any of her friends. There was always a part of her mind that worried she would lose her friends if she argued with them. This time seemed a little different though. She couldn't take Asuna calling Negi a nuisance lightly. Not after all that he had done for her. One of these days Asuna was just going to have to learn that not everything said was a slight against her. Setsuna turned the corner and walked up to the door to her room. It was slightly open so Negi and Ku Fei must be home.

Setsuna opened the door and froze. Ku Fei was fast asleep in her bed. Negi leaned sat on the edge of her bed running his fingers through her hair. Setsuna knew that Ku Fei hated to try to sleep after she had one of her nightmares. The realization that she must have passed out again hit her like a ton of bricks. Something had to be done about her nightmares. There was no reason that someone as sweet as her should be punished. Something was hurting her friend and that was something she just couldn't allow.

* * *

**End Chapter**

**Alright. That's the end for this chapter. Sorry for the fluff in this chapter. Any of my old fans that know me know I'm building up to something. Let me know what you guys thought. Next we delve in to some dreams. And Setsuna finally confronts Asuna! Yay!**


	3. Chapter 3

**First of all I would like to start by thanking everyone who has read the story so far. I would also like to thank everyone who has reviewed the story. Your reviews, be they good or bad, help me to be a better writer.**

**Second I would like to address the issue of Ku Fei's speech pattern. I'm not very good at writing broken English. So with the help of my lovely proof reader I am going to make a better attempt. **

**Without further ado let's get to the disclaimer.**

**Zuul: Kotaro read the disclaimer for me.**

**Kotaro: When are we going to get to see some action?**

**Zuul: If you don't read the disclaimer you won't even see another chapter.**

**Kotaro: …Zuul-sama does not own Negima.**

**Zuul: Ha! I control all your fates.**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 3: Dark Dreams**

Ku Fei opened her eyes, the biting cold of marble floors stabbed at her back. She pushed herself up to all fours, trying to regain her senses. She was nauseous and a little lightheaded. When she calmed down enough she pushed herself onto her knees. Ku Fei opened her eyes and noticed that she wasn't in her room anymore. Her weapons, clothes, training gear, and bed were nowhere to be seen. Setsuna and Negi weren't there either. Her eyes opened wide in horror. The floor was black and white shining marble. The walls were black, blue flamed torches lit the walls, giving it an ethereal feeling. Along the walls were crimson colored tapestries. In the back of her mind Ku Fei realized that the walls were kind of familiar. The walls of the dorm rooms had never looked so odd in her time at the school.

'_Well that's comforting.' _Ku Fei thought sarcastically. "Where am I?...It look like dorm room halls …"

Ku Fei rose to her feet, grateful that the lightheaded feeling was gone. On either side of her the room was shrouded in shadows. It looked like a never ending corridor. The light patter of Fei's bare feet echoed in the empty hall. A sound like a small explosion echoed around the dark walls. She jumped and turned around. A large white door appeared in the middle of the shadows. It had no walls surrounding it; it just stood on its own against the darkness.

"That door not there before," she whispered. "Now I a little scared."

Despite her mounting fear she walked cautiously to the large door. It was the only way out of this hall. Just as he was about to turn the silver knob the door opened on its own. "Fair enough," she muttered. Steeling herself, she walked through the door way. This room was different. The floor was now covered with a carpet of the deepest crimson. It felt soft under her feet, but still extremely cold. The walls had changed to normal grey stone with a rough looking texture. The torches on the wall were lit with black fire. Long mirrors were embedded into the wall. The continued down the length of the entire hall. _'No! I-I don't want to be here! Not again! I don't want to be here!' _The sound of a door slamming made her jump. She turned around and found that the large white doorway had begun to disappear. "No!" Ku Fei rushed towards the disappearing door. She reached out to grab the handle but her hand closed on nothing but air. Ku Fei whimpered and ran frantic hands through her hair. With no other choice left, she continued down the hall.

The mirrors showed her just as she looked: messy blond hair, big emerald eyes, and her yellow pajamas. She walked by one mirror and stopped. What drew her attention to that mirror she had no idea. As she got closer to the mirror her clothes started to change bit by bit. Before she knew it she was dressed in an n all black version of training outfit. Ku Fei glanced down at the outfit that she was wearing now. How had her clothes changed so drastically in an instant? Ku Fei took a closer look at the mirror and noticed that something was behind her. The shadows formed the rough outline of a head. Two glowing red eyes became visible just behind her left shoulder. The blond martial artist startled by the sudden appearance of the eyes bolted around. The area behind her was void of life.

Out of the corner of her right eye Ku Fei spotted something at the end of the hall. It looked like Negi. Seeing the friendly face cheered her up and bolstered her confidence. There was something wrong though. Negi was pale and glowing like he had light surrounding him. She tried to call out to the ghostly figure of her teacher but it ignored her. He turned around and ran off down another corridor. Ku Fei chased after him, determined not to be left alone in this frightening place. After what seemed like an eternity she reached the corner and turned down another hall that looked the same as the previous one. Negi was waiting for her at a door at the opposite end of the hall. The door looked like it was made out of solid oak with a silver handle. Ku Fei started walking towards him when suddenly Negi stepped straight through the door.

Ku Fei hesitated. It was against her better judgment to follow after him. "What if Negi-bozu in trouble? I need help him." Unfortunately her better judgment abandoned her a long time ago. "I so stupid."

Ku Fei walked towards the door, and hesitantly placed her hand on the door. With no small amount of trepidation she gave the handle a turn and pushed the door open. The room inside looked just like Negi's classroom. It was empty with the exception of the desks and cabinets. Ku Fei walked deeper in the room so that she was just in front of the teacher's deck. She called out to Negi but no one answered back. Ku Fei walked over to one of the windows and looked outside; dark clouds swirled outside of the windows blocking the normal view of the courtyard. A bolt of lightning flashed outside and the light in the classroom turned to nothing but blackness. The lights popped back on and Ku Fei screamed in terror.

The class was filled with the rest of the students sitting at their desks. Dead. Class rep was sitting in her chair her head lolling over the back. Her throat was slit, the blood pooling down her shirt and in to her lap. Asuna was pinned to the wall by a metal rod through her eye. Konoka was slumped over her desk; her back slashed open, revealing parts of her spine. Kaede was lying in a pool of her own blood, her chest badly slashed open. Ku Fei's breathing picked up and she started to shake. She backed up to the corner of the room and slumped to the ground. Tears flowed freely from her eyes. She buried her head in her arms as her body shook with sobs.

"Ku! Ku! Help me!"

Ku Fei's head shot up. "S-Setsuna?"

Ku Fei stood up and looked at the back of the classroom. Setsuna was walking between the rows of dead students at a slow limp. Her normally beautiful face covered in thin scratches and her left arm was torn off at the elbow. She clutched her arm attempting to close off the flow of blood. Ku Fei was afraid to even try and get around Kaede's body. All it took was another call for help from roommate to jog her out of her frightened stupor. She edged her way around the body of her friend and ran towards Setsuna. Just as she reached out to her an invisible force punched a hole through the brunette's chest. Flecks of blood sprayed Ku Fei's face. The blond turned towards the door and tried to run. Negi was standing just in front of her breathing heavily.

"Ku-san are you alright?"

"Negi-kun? Wh-what…"

"We have to get out of here! There's gon-"

Negi's sentence trailed off in to a gurgle. Blood dripped from his mouth. A dagger protruded from his throat the blade coated in his blood. Negi slumped to the ground and Setsuna's body was thrown on top of his. Their white, lifeless eyes stared up at her accusingly. She stumbled backwards and fell on her rear. Standing over the corpses of her two friends was a figure dressed from head to toe in black leather. A mask covered the person's entire head effectively hiding his identity. The killer stepped over the dead bodies and took a tentative step towards Ku Fei.

"Wh-why you d-doing this?" She sobbed. The tears were pouring from her eyes

The figure cocked his head curiously at her. "What do you mean?" Asked a high pitched voice. "Do you think that you aren't a part of this?

Ku Fei jumped and her fight or flight response kicked in. She scrambled to her feet and made to run for the back of the room. She stopped dead in her tracks. Setsuna was standing in front of her. Patches of skin were missing from the swords girl's face and body. Ku Fei took a step backwards and tripped over Kaede's dead body. Her head shot to the left and she came face to face with Negi. Like Setsuna patches of skin were missing from his face. A particularly large amount of skin was missing from his jaw which revealed the glaring white of his jaw bone. A scream caught in Ku Fei's throat. She scrambled back across the ground until she was pressing her back firmly against the wall. Negi and Setsuna each grabbed an arm and pinned her to the wall.

"Why didn't you save me?" Setsuna asked.

"Wh-what?" Ku Fei asked desperately. "I-I tried. I not want-ed," she sobbed.

"You killed us," Negi answered firmly.

"No. I-I not hurt you! Never!"

The killer kneeled down in front of her. He lowered his head ever so slightly and reached back to pull the mask off. Just behind the killer; sitting on the desk was a short pale blue creature. Her vision was blocked by a mass of blond hair tied off on each side. The figure lifted its head and Ku Fei found herself staring at a perfect copy of her. The mirror image smiled, revealing pearly white teeth.

"You so jealous of them. Now they gone. Happy now?'

Ku Fei panicked. "N-no. I-I notr hurt them!" She cried.

The copy pulled a knife from her belt and held it in a reverse grip. "It okay. You joining them now," it said without emotion. It raised its knife and slashed at her throat.

Ku Fei sat bolt upright screaming bloody murder at the top of her lungs. Negi and Setsuna were at her side in an instant. They tried to reach out to her but Ku Fei shoved them away. All she could do was see them as the lifeless figures from before.

"Ku it's okay," Setsuna soothed. "It was just a bad dream."

Negi sat on the edge of the bed. "Ku-san, what happened?"

"Y-you…it…"

"Ku-san everything is going to be fine."

"Wh-where?" She asked. Her fear was preventing her from forming full sentences.

"You're in the room. its okay Ku it's safe." Setsuna sat down on her bed and gave Ku Fei's hand a squeeze. "Everything's okay. Tell us what happened," she requested gently.

Ku Fei backed in to the corner of the bed and pulled her pillow close to her body. She opened her mouth to talk but no words came out. Instead she burst in to tears and buried her head in the pillow. Negi and Setsuna moved to her side in an instant. Ku Fei reached out and pulled them both as close to her as she could. Negi's eyes narrowed. On her lower back, just below the hem of her shirt, were three long scratches. Negi gently pulled the shirt a little to the side to get a better look at the wounds. Negi caught Setsuna's gaze and nodded towards the scratches. Setsuna took in a deep breath. Concern for her friends well being filled her eyes. Kamo had climbed up on the bed and was looking at the scratches. When he looked up he saw a look of determination on Negi's face that he had never seen before. Negi felt Ku Fei tug him closer and he hugged her tighter in response. The dreams had to stop and they had to stop now.

The rest of that morning found the three of them sleeping on the floor. Ku Fei refused to stay in her bed by herself. The only way that she agreed to get some rest was if they stayed with her. So while Setsuna prepared an area for them to sleep on Negi sat with her. She barely moved her hand from his and she never shifted more than inch away. Negi finally convinced her to let him take a look at the scratches on her back. He used the minor healing spell that he knew to heal the wounds. Ku Fei whimpered from the contact of the magical energy. After just a few seconds the wounds closed up and the pain disappeared. Ku Fei started muttering fiercely about how she didn't want to go back to sleep. Setsuna tried her best to convince the girl that she needed to get some sleep. Negi lifted his blue and green glowing hand up to the back of her head and gently tapped her on the top. He gently pressed his forehead against hers in a comforting gesture. Ku Fei's eyes fluttered briefly then closed. She slumped forward unconscious in his arms.

Negi watched his two students fast asleep on the floor. Ku Fei was fast asleep from the sleeping spell with him on one side and Setsuna on the other. Negi hated to see one of his students in so much pain. The young blond whimpered, squirming ever so slightly in her sleep. Negi ran his fingers through Ku Fei's hair to calm her down. Almost instantly the young blond calmed down. Chamo walked over and patted Negi on the shoulder to get his attention. Negi looked over and saw that his furry friend was pointing to the alarm clock. The blue LED read 6:30 a.m. Negi nodded. With a deep sigh he pulled himself up from the floor. Negi had managed to create a dreamless sleep potion for her to use but it didn't seem to work. All that the potion succeeded in was lowering the the severity of the nightmares. Something had to be done about the nightmares. He couldn't do it on his own. He needed help from someone with experience more considerable than his own.

* * *

Takahata T. Takamichi, one of the most famous people in the world of magic, leaned back against the couch in the teachers' lounge. Takamichi was tall and lean with snow white hair. His green eyes scanned over the lines of the grade book in front of him, causing him to breathe a sigh of annoyance. Sometimes his students just didn't get the gist of the lesson. The mage leaned back in his chair smoothing out the sleeves of his white suit jacket. Takamichi was well known throughout the magical world for his work with the Thousand Master's group Ala Rubra. After the group disbanded Takamichi carried on his work of destroying dangerous criminal sects. Despite not being unable to cast spells he was one of the most powerful and well known mages in the world. So why was he here at Mahora Academy? Well that's too long of a story to get in to now. Let's just say that it has something to do with a love for teaching and a four foot shinso vampire.

The best part about teaching at the school (besides getting to help all of the girls find their way) was that he got to watch the son of one of his closest friends grow up. When Takamichi first met Negi had to do a double take. The young mage looked just like his father. To make sure that Nagi hadn't come back in child form he had to punch himself. After talking to Negi for a mere five minutes he could tell why he thought that the two might be the same person. The two of them were so similar, yet different at the same time. Takamichi could tell that the young boy was a prodigy and destined to be the best. Just like his father. All he needed was someone to train him along the way. If nothing else he was going to be there to help Nagi's son. It was the least that he could do to repay the thousand master for all he had done.

The door to the teacher's lounge slid open and Negi stepped inside. "Hey Takamichi?"

Takamichi glanced up from his book and smiled. "Negi-kun? What are you doing here so early?" The white haired mage used his foot to kick a chair away from the coffee table. "Come and sit down. Chamo-kun, what brings you two here?"

Negi walked over and sat down in the chair while Chamo jumped down on to the coffee table. "We needed to find you Takamichi." The ermine answered simply.

"Is that so?" The former Ala Rubra member stood up and walked over to the coffee machine. "Coffee?" He asked, offering them the pot. Negi shook his head, he hated coffee. Chamo gave him a nod and he poured two cups adding some sugar to the ermines. "So what can I do for you two?" He set the cups of coffee down on the table and sat down.

"Well…Takamichi…the um thing is, I'm having some trouble with one of my students."

"They're giving you trouble?"

"No! Nothing like that! I'ts just that I'm worried about her. And I need some help."

"Well then what is it?"

"I-I pr-promised her I wouldn't tell anyone and…"

Takamichi held a hand up for Negi to calm down. Lately the young mage teacher had become so independent that he never asked for help. Negi had to learn that asking for help wasn't a sign of weakness or childishness. No one was invincible. And seeing Negi the way he was now reminded him of the Negi that he first met. It was good to know that the young boy hadn't changed too quickly. Asking for help isn't something that Takamichi considered childish. Trying to shield everyone from danger, while a noble ambition, held a childish naiveté to it. So in that respect he still wasn't quite an adult yet. That would have to change if he ever hoped to reach his father's level.

"Anything you say will be between us Negi-kun," Takamichi said with a smile. "Now. Is it Asuna-kun?"

Negi shook his head. "Ku Fei-san."

"Fei-kun?" Negi nodded. Takamichi had a habit of calling the members of the Baka Rangers by their first name since they stayed after class so much. "Is she okay?"

Negi rubbed his arm and looked down at the table. Negi related the story to Takamichi. From the moment that she woke him the other night through her irritability in their training session later that day. He explained that she had the nightmares for a long time. He even told Takamichi what the nightmares were like. Negi explained every detail as best he could. For his part Takamichi just sat and listened.

"So I've been giving her dreamless sleep potions the last couple days," Negi finished. "I thought that they were working until this morning."

"Not exactly a good permanent solution," Takamichi agreed. "She told you about her dream this morning?"

Negi looked down at the table and began to pick imaginary lint off of his jacket sleeve. Chamo pretended to finish his coffee when in reality the cup had been drained minutes ago. "Not exactly."

"What do you mean?"

"I knew she wouldn't tell me. So…"

"You read her mind." It wasn't a question. Though it wasn't exactly an admonition, Takamichi was not always on the right side of the law.

Negi nodded sheepishly. "I know that it was wrong." He blushed and pressed the tips of his fingers together. "But if I was going to help her I had to know."

"Delving in to another's mind without permission is risky Negi." He leaned forward. "Now let's talk solutions."

Negi breathed a sigh of relief. Rooting around in someone's mind was dangerous for an amateur like him. All kinds of things could go wrong. Not to mention the fact that it was completely immoral to invade his student's mind. Takamichi merely smiled at his younger counterpart. It was obvious that Negi's students were very important to him. Ku Fei was one of the students that he was closest to.

"Okay." Takamichi rested his elbows on his knees, folded his hands and rested his chin on top of them. "Let's go back over this. She can remember the dreams?"

Negi nodded. "Every detail. From the way the ground feels to the last word she said."

"I have never had a dream where I can remember the feel of the ground."

"Have you ever woken up and found scratches on you?" Negi asked leaning forward.

"Hm. Well people have been known to scratch themselves during particularly frightening nightmares. Usually when they have something pinning them down. Same thing tends to happen as a result from succubus attacks."

Chamo shook his head. "Symptoms don't match up. She has short nails. The scratches are at too odd of an angle and too deep to be self inflicted."

"Then maybe these aren't just normal dreams. Maybe there is something or someone that's causing her to have the dreams."

"Wait. Didn't Ku-nee-san mention something about a voice aniki?" Chamo asked.

"Yeah. She did."

Negi wasn't really paying attention. He was trying his best to remember enough flashes about the dream that he picked out in Ku Fei's mind. Each image he saw was more terrifying than the last one. Seeing all of his students lying dead on the floor, hearing Ku Fei's screams and feeling her fear made it hard to concentrate.

"What kind of voice was it?"

"That's as far as we got."

"She seemed really frightened by that voice," Negi murmured. Suddenly it hit Negi like a mach truck. There was a piece of the dream that he never noticed before. "In the dream there was this…creature."

"Creature?" Takamichi asked. He looked at Chamo and then back at Negi. "What did he look like?"

Negi shook his head. His old habit of getting frustrated when trying to remember details was starting to surface. "Pale blue skin. Sharp angular face. Stringy purpleish hair. Sharp looking teeth." He sighed in annoyance. "That's all I can remember."

"Well that's a start. The thing in the dream might be causing the nightmares. A demon or a spirit. I'm betting that if you stop the demon you stop the nightmares."

"Right! I'll start researching it right now!" Negi jumped up and started towards the door.

"Hey! Aren't you forgetting something?" Chamo called after him.

Negi stopped at the door and snapped his fingers. "It's Friday. I have to teach class."

"Go ahead," Takamichi said. "I can watch the class for you. It's more important to find out what's happening to Fei-kun."

"Right! Come on Chamo-kun!"

* * *

Ayase Yue sighed and leaned against the front checkout desk. She pulled one of her thick locks of blue hair back behind her head with disgust. She had never liked her hair. In fact there was nothing about her physical features that Yue liked. From the peculiar shades of purple in her hair and eyes, all the way down to her short height. Yue sighed and leaned against the front checkout desk. There was never anything to do when she worked the early mornings in the library. It seemed like more and more things were boring her than before. The only thing that seemed to bring her any enjoyment was training her magical abilities. Well that and a certain young mage teacher.

Yue sighed as the picture of Negi entered her mind. Her feelings for the mage she made a contract with were continuing to grow at an alarming rate. There were a few problems with her burgeoning feelings that came straight to her mind. First of those reasons being that Negi was only ten years old. Number two there were so many other girls that he could choose from. All of them she believed to be prettier than herself. Neither of those were the biggest problem though. The age difference was something that she could overlook easily enough. No, the main problem was that her best friend Nodoka was also in love with the young man. Yue sighed and placed another book back in its rightful place on the shelf. Why could nothing ever come easy in this world? It wasn't like Negi was just going to run in to the library and say…..

"Yue-san! I need you!"

Yue jumped and whipped around to face the source of the voice. Negi was running towards her as fast as he could. Chamo hung on to the boy's shoulder and waved to her. "Negi-sensei," she greeted calmly. A light blush crept its way up her cheeks at his greeting. "What are you doing here so early?"

"Research," he stated bluntly. "I need your help."

"Research? With what?"

"I need any book that you have on demons. Specifically that can control dreams."

Yue blinked at him in confusion. Why would he want a reference book like that? Oh well. It was none of her business why he needed it in the first place. "I'll look for the best books to search through."

"Oh! Oh Yuechi!" Chamo cried excitedly. "When you get the chance use your artifact. It should help us out a lot!"

Yue nodded and ran off to pull up the books for her teacher. Negi walked over to one of the large square tables and Chamo leapt from his shoulder. Negi unfastened his cloak and slung it over the chair next to him. He emptied the contents of his pockets on to the table and sat down. Negi reached down in his briefcase and pulled out a small pad of paper and a feather quill. If he was going to study he wanted it to be just like back in school. After all the mood was right. A dimly lit library, a table to himself and soon he would be surrounded by books. The only thing that would be missing was Anya standing over his shoulder and complaining about how bored she was. The memory of his red headed friend brought a smile to the boys face. Maybe he would visit her before he traveled to the magical world. There was something more important than seeing his old friend at the moment.

It was several minutes before Yue came back with a large stack of books that wobbled precariously in her arms. Negi relieved her of the burden and set the books down on the table. As quickly as possible he separated the books in to three piles. Chamo motioned to Yue and stood on the table to keep watch. The young ministra drew her pactio card and in a swirl of light a large book appeared in her hands.

"Negi-sensei? What do you hope to get done with a few minutes before class left?"

"I'm not teaching the class today." He answered without looking up from the book.

Yue knew the look of determination that crossed her teachers face. She had seen the look on his face before and knew that he was becoming obsessed. It worried her. Last time he became obsessed it had nearly changed the future. Negi had barely recovered in time enough to do battle with Chao. The main question in Yue's mind: What was he fighting this time?

"Maybe I should stay and help you?" Yue offered.

"Eh…no that's alright. Besides today is a review for our upcoming test. You shouldn't miss it."

"Oh. O-okay."

Yue placed the encyclopedia down next to him with a sad smile. "Negi-sensei what is this all about?"

Negi looked up at Yue and could clearly see the pleading in her eyes. He didn't want to lie to Yue. Nor did he want to betray Ku Fei's trust. "I promise you that I am not in any danger." Negi gave her a dazzling smile and she couldn't help but smile back. "Go ahead and get to class."

"Alright. I'll be back with some lunch later."

"Thank you Yue-san!"

"Wow. That was rough."

"I hate lying to them Chamo-kun. But I promised Ku-san. Let's get started. I want to find whatever this is and stop it!"

* * *

YAAAAWWWWWWWNNNNNNNNNN!

"You know you don't look so good. Are you sure you should be going to class?"

Ku Fei glanced up at her roommate through bleary eyes. The nights of no sleep were starting to come back on her and it was showing. "I fine. Just sleepy."

"You are not just sleepy. Something is seriously wrong!" Setsuna deadpanned. Ku Fei ignored her and gave a shrug. Before the blond could walk away Setsuna grabbed her by the shoulder. "Fei this is serious. You haven't slept in days. You are sick and I'm really starting to worry. So is Negi-sensei."

Ku Fei sighed and glanced at Setsuna. The Shinmeiryuu only used her first name when she was really worried. "Setsuna I sorry. I not mean to worry you."

Setsuna placed Yuunagi against the wall and pulled Ku Fei out of the middle of the hall. "You said something about a person in the dream. Who is it? Tell me who is doing this to you?"

Emerald eyes clouded over and locked on to her shoes. She knew more than anyone that Setsuna could take care of herself. This wasn't something that she could help with. If she got Setsuna involved she would only get hurt as well. No. That couldn't happen. She couldn't allow any of her friends to get hurt. If it was only her then that was alright.

"Setsuna I…." There was a shrill bell that announced the beginning of classes saving her from coming up with an excuse. "Class starting. We late."

Setsuna sighed, watching helplessly as her friend walked in to their classroom. The brunette sighed and followed her in to the room. Everyone had already made it to their seats and was chatting amiably. Setsuna caught the wave that Konoka sent her and gave s small wave of her own. The class was its normal boisterous self but something was wrong. Negi wasn't at the front of the class. The young teacher almost always managed to be the first person in the room.

'_He left the room pretty early in the morning. He should have been here by now. I hope that he is okay.'_

"Negi-bozu not here?" Ku Fei asked herself silently.

The door to the room opened revealing not Negi but their former English teacher. Takamichi walked in to the class and leaned back against his old desk. "Alright girls. It is needless for me to say that Negi-kun finds himself incapable of teaching today."

There was a general murmur of confusion among the class about their teacher's whereabouts. Asuna turned around in her seat to give Setsuna a questioning glare. Setsuna met the pair of mismatched eyes with a blank stare of her own. She hadn't exactly forgiven the redhead for kicking Negi out of the dorm room. Instead she turned to see what her roommate thought of this news. Fei's green orbs were red rimmed from lack of sleep and crying. Behind the redness Setsuna could see the worry for Negi. The young blond woke with a panic when she realized that Negi hadn't been in the room. _'I hope that Negi-sensei is alright. I wonder if Takahata-sensei knows anything?'_

Takamichi glanced around the room to gauge the reactions of the girls. Oddly enough Asuna and Konoka weren't among the students that caught his eye. Setsuna and Ku Fei were both staring at him adamantly. There was another pair of eyes from the back of the room that caught his attention. The icy blue eyes of Evangeline Anastasia Katherine McDowell stared deeply in to his own bluish grey eyes. Takamichi had never been scared to meet the gaze of the doll master as some have been. However, he knew that the three of them would want to know what happened to the young mage teacher. Thankfully someone else asked the question first.

"Takahata-sensei? Is Negi-sensei not feeling well?" Ayaka asked in concern.

Takamichi smiled and leaned back against his former desk. He was happy that Ayaka asked so that he could address the whole class. "Alright girls settle down." The class quieted instantly. Takamichi was very close with the class and so the mood easily became informal. "Listen girls. I promise that Negi-kun is just fine. He merely had some important business to take care of and I offered to take over the class. He's going to be back on Monday."

Most of the girls, save for all of the ones in Negi's inner circle, bought the story. As he began to write on the board he could feel a pair of eyes on his back. All throughout the class the same pair of tired green eyes stayed locked on him.

* * *

"Awww man this is hopeless Aniki!"

"It's not hopeless Chamo-kun!"

"Oh really?" The ermine asked sarcastically. "We have read every book here at least three times and we haven't found a thing!"

Negi had to admit that the ermine was right. Both of them had found several pieces of information but nothing solid. And they had been at the search for about four hours now. Every book had been read by Negi with great scrutiny before being passed on to Chamo. Then Chamo would give him the book he was reading and the process would repeat itself.

"You can take a break if you need to Chamo-kun."

"It's not like I want to stop looking. I just don't know how useful this research is going to be. I mean we still haven't found anything."

"I have to keep trying. You didn't see what these dreams are like."

Chamo shook his head and sat back against the pile of books. "Doesn't mean I don't know how bad it is. I've seen what things like this can do to people."

"If Ku Fei-san hadn't asked me not to tell I could go to others. I'm sure master would know something."

"Maybe. I'm just not sure going to Evangeline for this would be good idea." There was a low grumble and Chamo rubbed his stomach. "I just wish that we had some food. I'm starving."

"Well I'm not going to take a break anytime soon. I want to find out what this thing is."

"Maybe I can help with that." Announced a confident voice.

"Alright girls. That is it for the day. Remember to study for the test."

Takamichi leaned back in his chair while the girls filed out of the room. Each girl enthusiastically bid their former teacher a good day on the way out of the room. On the way out of the room Evangeline glared at the white haired mage. Takamichi knew the meaning of that glare all too well. It said simply: 'you know something and I want to know what it is.' Despite the implied threat behind the look Takamichi merely flashed his best smirk. As the tiny shinso vampire left the room Takamichi leaned over the papers on his desk. As he poured over the papers on his missions from the magical world he felt something. Someone was standing just in front of the desk staring at him. The same person that was staring at him throughout the class.

"Fei-kun? What can I do for you?"

Takamichi looked up and couldn't help the small gasp of shock that escaped his lips. This was the first time during the day that he actually took in Ku Fei's appearance. The bedraggled appearance and weak bloodshot eyes slightly frightened the teacher. Takamichi pushed the chair out with his foot and gestured for her to sit down. The young blond sat in the chair and gave her former teacher a false smile.

"So can I help you Fei-kun?"

"Takahata-sensei, you no lie to me before. You always here to help?"

"O-of course."

"Where Negi-bozu really at?"

Takamichi sighed. Ku Fei managed to back him in to a corner. There was no way he could lie to her in her fragile state. "Negi went to the library. He's trying to find a way to help you."

"NO!" Ku Fei cried. She jumped out of the chair knocking it to the ground. "He can't. He hurt them to!"

Takamichi stood up and gripped Ku Fei's shoulders. "Who Is hurting you? Who is doing this to you?" He asked with flames erupting in his eyes.

"I-I-I sorry! I late for class!"

Ku Fei grabbed her bag and bolted from the room. Takamichi ran to the door to go after her. However, in the seconds that it took him to reach the door Ku Fei disappeared in crowd of students. For the first time in a long time Takamichi felt powerless to save his student.

* * *

"Kotaro-kun? What are you doing here?"

Kotaro glanced over the bag in his hands at Negi and Chamo. With all of the books around them it looked as though they were preparing for war "Nice to see you to Negi."

Realizing just how rude he sounded Negi quickly apologized. "Sorry Kotaro-kun. Just a little stressed out."

"Right. Anyway Yue-ne-chan wanted me to bring you guys some food." He gestured to the bag bearing the symbol of the old Chao-Bao-Zi food stand.

"The gods will shine down on you for this kid!" Chamo cried gleefully. Kotaro put the bag down on the table and the ermine dived in head first. "OH! Bottles of water and those dumplings. Why are there three meals here?"

"Hey I might as well eat to," Kotaro grinned wolfishly. "So what are you guys up to?" The young inu sat down at the table and pulled out one of the containers.

"Oh, uh it's nothing important." Negi said.

"Nothing important?" Kotaro bit in to a dumpling and looked at the titles of one of the books. "All of these books look like they are about different demons. And that purple haired chibi was really worried. Are you guys in some sort of trouble?"

"No. We aren't in trouble. But…"

Chamo took a sip from his water bottle and sighed. "Aniki. Maybe Kotrao can help us. He does know more about this kind of thing than we do."

"Chamo we promised her that we wouldn't tell anyone."

"One of the girls is in trouble?" Negi and Chamo shared a side long glance. "Negi you can trust me."

Negi bit his lip and nodded. "Alright. But you cannot tell anyone." Kotaro nodded fervently. "It's Ku Fei-san."

"Ku-ne-chan? What's happening to her?"

"I better start from the beginning."

So Negi related all of the information that he had to Kotaro. Down from the lack of sleep all the way down to the gruff demeanor so uncommon of the young martial artist. He even shared a bit of the dream with his young friend. After taking all of the information Kotaro released a held breath. His wine colored eyes narrowed in concern at what he had been told. Some of the information was quite disturbing. Nightmares that were so realistic the dreamer thought they were real? Being able to remember every single detail of the dream? And even what the lack of sleep was doing to her? This was bad. All of the things that Negi said were indications of her being attacked in her sleep. Kotaro just had no idea of what the offending creature could be.

"You said that even a dreamless sleep potion is not working well?"

Negi nodded. "It works for a little bit."

"And just how bad is she?"

"Really bad," Chamo said, "I've seen her get worse and worse. She doesn't sleep, doesn't eat, and she's sloppy during training. Not to mention the mood swings."

"Hm? Loss of sleep and energy? An Incubus maybe?"

"No," Negi shook his head. "We already thought of that. The symptoms and the wounds don't match up."

"Whoa wait!" Kotaro held out his hand and leaned forward. "Did you say wound."

"Yeah. She has these scratches on her lower back."

"Self inflicted?"

"No. Her nails are too short and she can't reach where the scratches are?"

"Does that mean anything to you?" Chamo asked finishing a dumpling.

"Because we have been through every book of Japanese demons possible and nothing."

"Dreams that she can remember. Non self inflicted wounds. Real terror and lack of energy. I don't think that there is any demon in Japan that matches that description or the symptoms."

Negi stared at Kotaro with a gob smacked expression. "Of course! The reason we haven't found anything was because we were looking in the wrong place! Chamo where are those books on other demons?"

Chamo leapt on to a cart that held some books about demons in other cultures. Originally they had decided they didn't need the books because they were about local demons. Negi jumped up and grabbed a stack of books from the top of the cart. Kotaro quickly followed his friends example and sat back down.

"If all three of us look through these books we should get done quickly!"

"Wait!" Chamo cried. "I don't think that we have to."

Negi and Kotaro jumped out of their seats and ran around to the cart. The book in front of Chamo looked rather old. The cover was wrapped in worn brown leather and the pages were yellow. The writing on the front of the book appeared to be ancient Greek. Just below the title a creature was etched in to the cover. The pointed face was marked by slit like eyes and a row of short but sharp teeth. Stringy hair accented the horrifying face on the front of the cover. Negi ran a hand over the cover of the book. As the tips of his fingers brushed over the eyes he received a jolt down his spine. The library faded for a brief second and he was presented with the vision of leering red eyes. He pulled his hand away as though burned and the library shot back in to focus. Negi stared at his hand, vaguely aware of his companions staring eyes.

"Negi? You okay?"

Negi nodded. "Yeah," he breathed. "I think that we found it."

* * *

**End Chapter**

**Alright, chapter 3 has finally been posted. Now that I have my proof reader back and I have recovered from my…problems I hope things will go smoother. Help me out by sending me more reviews. Until next time!**


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